Kuleana
by Meredith McGarrett
Summary: A family trip to the beach takes an unexpected turn ... Kuleana means Responsibility.


**Kuleana**

It's a warm and sunny day. Danny has something exciting and relaxing planned for the day. The detective plans to take Grace and her little brother to Lanikai Beach on O'ahu. So they could picnic there, Charlie can build sand castles. According to Super Seal, the beach there is a dream. When he informed Steve about his planned family trip, he smiled and said: "Take them to Lanikai Beach, Danno. They are gonna love it there."

At first, Danny was a little skeptical because it was a beach and all. And Danny didn't like the ocean that much, after what happened to his friend.

But Grace likes the ocean, and so does Charlie. And Danny loves his children. Having a day off and no crazy criminals to hunt down - that is the perfect opportunity to spend a day with Charlie and Grace. Considering it's the weekend, Grace has no school and he had talked to Rachel if he could have Charlie for the day, because of the trip to the beach, a white and sandy beach. Surprisingly, Rachel had agreed pretty quickly to let him have Charlie for the weekend.

So it comes that he and Charlie were in the kitchen, already up. Now they were both waiting for Grace. Who apparently was sleeping in when they wanted to do something. "Hey little man, wanna help me prepare breakfast or I have a better idea - wake up your big sister?"

Charlie looked at his dad with big, blue eyes. He smiled shyly.

"Wake her up." Danny encouraged him with a smile.

With that, Charlie turned around and ran up the stairs, up to Grace's room. He pushed the door open somewhat loudly and jumped on her bed, shaking her shoulder while yelling: "Wake up, Grace."

Grace woke up in the next second and was sitting up in her bed. "Charlie, leave me alone. I want to sleep in." She grumbled, obviously pissed at her younger brother for waking her up.

"Danno says you need t' wake up," Charlie said, not caring about his sister being annoyed by his actions.

"Why?" Grace did not understand.

"It's the weekend, I have no school which means I get to sleep in." She replied, disappearing behind her covers.

"He says we go to the beach, Grace."

Charlie was seemingly very happy about this. "He is right, monkey. Danno has planned something for us, a nice family trip. And you are coming with us, not negotiable." Danny stood in the doorway.

"But..." Grace tried to interrupt. "I have things to do."

"More pressing things than spending a day with your family? What else is so important that you would rather spend your day doing that particular thing than spending it with us?" Danny knew his daughter could be difficult, especially in her teenage years.

Grace just huffed.

"Come on, monkey. Get up, get dressed. We leave at eight." Danny told her, shrugging when the detective saw his daughter's face that clearly said it was way too early for to be up.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Danny was happy when both Grace and Charlie were in the car, ready to leave. Grace still did not look that enthusiastic but seemed to be in a better mood than when she woke up. "Where are we going, anyway?" She asked, trying to keep up the façade of being annoyed.

Danny knew she was beginning to enjoy this. "The beach."

"What beach?" She wanted to know. Instead of answering, Danny asked if she's packed her swim suit, sun screen and snorkel in case she wants to go snorkeling and exploring the water.

"Sure, I did. I'm fifteen, Danno. I know what to pack when going to the beach." His daughter replied. While Danny and Grace were discussing stuff, Charlie pressed his nose against the window to keep himself occupied. Then Danny started driving down the road. Grace left her phone at home, seeing as Danno told her she would not need it.

When they drove past a small souvenir shop, Grace called out: " Can you stop here for a sec? I want to buy us chocolate- covered macadamia nuts."

Danny looked at her, somewhat surprised. At first, she didn't even want to come and now she wants to buy macadamia nuts? How come? Grace Williams knew exactly what Danny thought.

"I know you like them, Danno. And I am sorry for not wanting to come."

"You changed your mind? I am glad you did, monkey." Danny gave her big smile, elated about his daughter's sudden change of heart. "Can I?" Grace wriggled impatiently in her seat, in reply, Danny turned the car around and parked it near the souvenir shop. There was a big sign that read _Naturally Hawaiian Gallery Gifts_.

As soon as the car stood still, Grace unbuckled herself and stormed towards the entrance. She was greeted with a warm Aloha as she entered.

"Aloha," Grace replied in a friendly voice as she looked for the macadamia nuts. There were a lot of other interesting things as well like Kona Coffee, Hula dashboard dolls, Hawaiian Shirts, and hand- carved Hawaiian Tikis - small statues made out of wood. And then she saw the macadamia nuts, the ones she wanted.

A few minutes later, Danny saw Grace exiting the store. In her hands the wanted macadamia nuts in chocolate.

"So let's go the beach," Danny said as Grace was back in the car, opening the nuts and started eating them. "Want some," Charlie demanded, stretching his hands out. Grace dropped three nuts in his hand before saying: "You still haven't told us where we are going."

Danny figured this was her asking where they were going. "To the beach, monkey." He answered patiently.

"What beach?"

"Because, you know, Danno, there are a lot of beaches on O'ahu. Beach isn't very specific." Danny made a small click sound with his tongue before replying: "Sure know that, Grace."

"Then why won't you tell me?" Grace insisted. The sun was shining, the sky blue and behind some palm trees she could make out the blue ocean. Now she was looking forward to spending the day at the beach. She couldn't believe she didn't want to come. Danny was driving on the Pali Highway over to the Windward side of watching the beautiful landscape pass by.

Soon she realized that Danny had stayed on the Pali Highway at Kamehameha Highway when Pali Highway turns into Kalanianaole Highway. "We are driving to Kailua Beach, right?" Grace guessed as she saw that they were in Kailua, driving on Kailua Road.

"It's a surprise, Gracie," Danny said while focusing on the somewhat curvy road.

"Fine." She said, sighing.

"But the beach is near Kailua, isn't it?" Grace tried again. Grace has been here before, of course. She'd grown up on the islands, so the area isn't totally unknown to her.

"Not saying anything." Danny stayed hard. "Stubborn," Grace mumbled. Charlie was watching the interaction between Grace and her father semi- interested.

Grace ate another macadamia nut before putting them away. Danny turns the car onto Kalanianaole Highway. Charlie peered through the window as they were nearing their destination.

"Are we there soon, Danno?" Charlie asked, now somewhat impatient.

After going through the intersection of Kailua Road and Kawailo Road and a few other roads- since Lanikai Beach is just past Kailua Beach, they finally reached their destination.

"We're there," Danny announced.

"Where?"

Danny turned to Grace who wore a gorgeous summer dress and sandals.

"Lanikai Beach."

He watched as a smile fell over Grace's face. She loved this beach. It was ideal for swimming and stand- up paddling. She had been here before, a few times maybe with a friend or so.

One thing she did know was that she always enjoyed it here...

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Lanikai Beach is located in Lanikai, a community in the town of Kailua and on the windward coast of Oahu, Hawaii.

Lanikai means _Heavenly Ocean_. Grace looked out onto the water. The water had a turquoise tone, really beautiful. Because it was a warm and sunny day, there were a few other families on the beach, some with small children. It's mile long beach of fine white sand and surf less, turquoise water is perfect for a beach day, Grace decided as she took off her sandals and walked on barefoot through the white sand.

Grace saw that there were other islands, not far away from O'ahu.

"Danno." She called. Not long after, her father was standing next to her. "Do you see that?"

Grace pointed toward the islands.

Danny squinted, seeing what she meant. "Those are three islands, monkey. I think they are called Moku Lua Islands. " He explained.

"Danny's right, you know. These islands are called Nā Mokulua."

Suddenly, there was a voice behind them. Grace looks like she likes the view of the Mokulua Islands, about a mile off shore, now that she knows their names.

Grace turned around and saw Chin and Sara standing there. "Chin, what are you doing here?" Danny said, happy to see the native Hawaiian. "I was stand- up paddling with Sara sitting on the board. It was fun. I didn't know I was going to see you guys here. That's a nice surprise."

"Can we visit them?"

Grace continued to ask about the Moku Lua Islands, obviously intrigued.

"Well, they offer kayaking trips to the islands. It takes about forty- five minutes to kayak to Moku Nui, the bigger one of the two islands. You can explore it, there are few interesting things there. The second one, Moku Iki is kapu. You can't go on land since it's forbidden but you can paddle around it." Chin answered, still smiling.

"Sounds amazing. I mean, the first island." Grace mumbled while gazing over to the islands.

She saw three kayaks paddling towards Moku Nui. The water was calm and it looked kinda easy. But Grace knew a little bit about kayaking from her sports lessons at school. Cheerleading wasn't her only interest. It was fun, sure but she also liked being outdoors.

"It sure is," Chin said, agreeing with Grace.

"Queen's Bath is one attraction. It is pool surrounded by stone formations. But it's also somewhat dangerous. But traveling to these islands... It's fun. I did that when I was younger. My father took me." Grace grinned as a thought came to her.

"I also enjoyed the nearby island Popoia, also known as Flat Island, where you can watch birds. But I think, that is not that interesting for people your age, is it?" Chin said knowingly.

"Danno, can we do that?"

"What?!" Danny asked panicked. He didn't want to go out in the ocean, and especially not in a yellow tin can.

"Kayaking over the Moku Lua Islands. This sounds like fun."

Grace, who did not want to go at all, was now begging her dad to take her on a kayaking trip to the Moku Lua Islands. "They are also called the Twin Islands," Chin told them with a chuckle. Sara was building sand castles with Charlie. They seemed to get along great.

"Please, Danno."

"We can't, monkey. Because Charlie is with us and we can't leave him here all by himself. And he is too small for it." Grace nodded. Partly, she had expected that but hearing him say it was still somewhat disappointing.

"I could take you some day, if you want and if that's okay with your dad." Chin offered.

Danny was on board with that after some convincing. Because that means he wouldn't need to go out on the water and he trusted Chin with Grace. "Today?" Grace asked, once again getting excited.

"Today, I can't, I promised Sara's grandparents they would see her this afternoon. How about next weekend, brah? That sound good?"

Grace grinned. "Yes." She exclaimed, obviously elated at the prospect.

"Great. So, little Sara and I are about to get some shave ice so we should get going." Chin said, giving Danny and Grace both a big hug. "See you soon, maybe tomorrow at Kamekona's shrimp truck? I'll ask Kono and Steve to join us."

"Awesome," Danny replied, happy. Then Grace and Danny watched Chin and Sara leave across the sandy beach. "Let's find a nice place in the shadows," Danny suggested, taking Charlie's hand.

"In the shadows? Near the palm trees? What about coconuts that can fall on your head?" Grace asked back while pointing at the palm trees near the beach.

Danny turned around, the sun blinded him for a moment.

"We won't choose a place that harbors potential danger." The detective replied calmly, effectively reminding Grace that he did think about that.

Grace looked around and out of a sudden, she found a nice place for them to settle down for the day.

"Look, over there." She said.

"See that place? No coconuts that can harm us, near the water and it is not located in the direct sun. It is what we wanted." Danny scrutinized the place for a moment before giving his okay.

"That's a nice- looking place."

Charlie was sitting in the sand, playing with it. "Come, Charlie. Let's go over there, shall we?" Grace took her brother's hand and slowly led him to where Danny waited for them. Danny had already spread the blanket in the sand and put the cooler and his backpack on it.

"This is my place," Charlie exclaimed, he started running to the blanket.

Grace laughed as she saw how happy her brother seemed. The landscape was nearly picturesque, with a turquoise blue ocean, white sandy beach and a lot of sunshine, perfect. Grace followed slower and sat down, glancing toward the Mokulua Islands. She wished next weekend was already there because then she'd be on her way to those islands.

But now, she was due to spend some quality time with her brother and Danno. Danny opened the cooler and took out three bottles of cooled water. He gave one to Grace, one to Charlie who needed help opening it before he took a large sip. "I have sandwiches and some fruits."

"Did you pack any pineapples, by any chance?" Grace asked pointedly.

"I just don't like them on pizza, Grace. Pineapple does not belong on pizza but I have nothing against the fruit himself." Danny explained.

Grace nodded, not quite believing what Danny just told her.

"Uh uh."

Before Danny could ask what that meant, Charlie interrupted his train of thoughts.

"Want chocolate," Charlie said.

"I haven't packed any chocolate. It would melt in the sun." Danny explained.

"But I have," Grace interjected while pulling out the macadamia chocolate she bought earlier today. "Here, you can have a piece, Charlie." She said, giving him some chocolate.

Charlie gave his big sister happy smile.

He reached into the cooler and gave them both a sandwich. Grace took it, finding that she was indeed hungry. Before she knew it, she had eaten the entire thing.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

"So, who wants to go swimming?"

Danny gazed expectantly at his children. "Me!" Charlie instantly exclaimed he was about to storm to the ocean when Danny told him to stop. "You can't just run away like that, especially not here. It is dangerous." Danny sighed.

"Come here, buddy. I'll help you change into your wetsuit. You also need to put these on." He pointed to a pair of floaties laying in the sand.

Grace was glad that she did not need them anymore.

"So, I guess I will get changed now," Grace mentioned before unpacking her bag.

She put on her nice bikini, the one she had chosen while going shopping with Danno.

"I'm going swimming." She said before walking toward the ocean. She felt the warm air on her arms and the cool wind. "Wait a sec, Grace," Danny told her. "I help him change and we'll be with you in a second." Grace waited. She could see a yacht on the horizon.

She was so deep in thought that she didn't realize that Charlie and Danny were ready.

Then the girl felt a tap on her shoulder before a loud, excited voice interjected her thoughts: "First person in the water wins."

When she turned around, Danny and Charlie were only about ten meters away from the ocean. Grace just watched the boys having fun as went into the water. Of course, the water was very shallow near the beach so that Charlie could easily stand. Danny smiled when he saw Charlie in the water, obviously enjoying the wetness and the small, practically none- existent waves.

The beach is surrounded by endless miles of calm, tranquil aqua blue waters. The same one she was now staring at.

Watching her brother and father in the water having fun. Despite the urge of joining them, she sat down in the sand, slowly taking it in her hands before letting her glance slide back to what was happening on the water.

So she sat there, for the next ten, five minutes. Until Danny's voice calling out to her caught her attention.

"Grace, why don't you come in?"

"I'm fine here." Grace insisted. "Maybe I'll go in later."

"So you will just sit there, sunbathing."

Danny shook his head. "Can't I just enjoy this sitting here? I do not have to be in the water in order to enjoy it."

"If you say so," Danny replied, while Charlie started splashing water at him.

Grace grinned at that.

Danny smiled before he picked his son up before he lets him slowly glide back into the water. But he was careful so that nothing would happen to him.

"More, more." He gushed.

"You want more, buddy?" Danny asked chuckling while he tickled him which leads to Charlie giggling wildly.

"More."

With that, Danny picked him up again and repeated his actions. What he didn't see is that his daughter finally decided to join them in the water.

"Hey," Grace said when she reached them. The water went up to her upper legs but was still shallow enough for Charlie to stand. "I am gonna go swim for a bit. 'k, Danno?" Grace told him.

"Be careful, monkey."

Danny was thinking about dangerous undertows and strong currents, slippery surfaces and objects underneath the water that cannot be seen from above the water.

"I will be. I can swim, Danno."

"I know. I trust your abilities but I still want you to not take any unnecessary risks and to be careful."

"Have fun with Charlie. I will be over there, swimming." With that, Grace waded deeper into the water. She reached the depth she needed she started swimming.

H50 H50 H50 H50

Water is warm, blue and clear, so clear that she was able to see the bottom. Danny was keeping a watchful eye on both of his children. Danny enjoyed Lanikai Beach as well, it was a nice change from the city.

Sure, with some time he began to like Honolulu but not as much as New Jersey. But now, he liked living here and not on the mainland. He had two beautiful children, a nice job and great friends here.

Steve for one.

Also Chin, Kono and lastly Lou, the newest addition to Five- 0.

Grace liked moving through the water. The water temperature was ideal, not too warm and not too hot. After awhile she stopped swimming and just turned onto her back, letting herself float.

Suddenly, she heard something. A weak, small cry. That got her to turn around. Grace's attention was caught. Relaxation was no longer on her mind, at least not if there is the possibility of someone being in danger.

She looked around. The waves became somewhat more unpredictable and higher. Additionally, the sky was getting darker.

A storm was coming, that was what Grace thought about first.

At some point, she saw a head, that kept appearing and disappearing in front of her eyes. Apparently, that person had trouble staying above water.

"I'm coming," Grace called out.

She swam as fast as she could. As she came nearer, she could make out the person in distress. In contrary to what she's seen in movie drownings, this person was not at all thrashing wildly around. Instead, the boy, that she could make out - he was maybe a little bit older than Charlie, was quiet.

Too quiet.

That Grace realized. "Danny." She screamed at the top of her lungs, all the while treading water.

She needed her Danno to help her save this boy.

She had almost reached him, approaching from behind for safety reasons. "Hello." She spoke, hoping for a response.

But there was no response.

Grace tried to keep him afloat by holding onto him so that he wouldn't disappear in the water. But how come he was in the deep water, weren't his parents paying attention or what?!

When Danny heard his daughter's scream, his blood ran cold.

He could instantly make out the urgency her voice.

 _Please, don't be caught in a bad riptide_ , that was his first thought.

Worry.

Fear.

Different emotions were coming in all at once.

He turns to Charlie, who got quiet because sensed the seriousness of the situation. "I'll bring you back to dry land. Charlie, come. Hurry."

When he was sure, Charlie was safe on land he went back into the water.

Grace.

 _Hold on. I'm coming_ , Danny thought as he quickly swam through the ocean, making his way over to his daughter.

And another person.

Once he realized there were two persons, he hoped that maybe it was not Grace who was in trouble. Not that he wished it onto someone else but this was his daughter.

They were pretty far out in the ocean.

Didn't he tell Grace to stay near the coast line? No, he did not.

"Danny." He heard Grace call out to him again.

Grace hoped Danny would be here promptly. It was getting harder and harder to keep them both afloat even when she is treading water. Her muscles seemed to turn to something resembling lead.

She felt herself sink under water a few times, but she didn't let the boy go.

She gripped onto him tightly. Water splashed into her face and she had to cough as some of it entered her upper airway. But it wasn't that big a deal. After a few seconds, everything went back to normal.

"Please, Danno. I need you." She begged quietly while treading water to keep her head above water.

When she looked at Grace saw the most beautiful thing - Danny coming to her rescue in long, strong and graceful strokes.

She knew he was panicked.

Panicking at the possibility of something happening to her.

Suddenly, she felt the boy staring at her with half- closed, exhausted eyes. Grace's head went under again when the next wave came, bigger than the ones before. The water had been calmer before.

"Help." He whispered, barely conscious.

Grace gazed around helplessly, hoping Danny would hurry. She could not do this a lot longer. "Help will be here soon, just hang on," Grace told him, feeling a little out of breath herself.

He started coming around, sputtering water. But he was too weak to keep himself above water.

That was something Grace had to do. Keeping them above water until help in form of Danno arrives.

 _Hurry_.

Then, after another minute or so, Danny appeared next to her. On Grace's face, a weak smile could be seen.

"You okay?" Danny asked, concerned.

Meanwhile, the sky got darker. It started to rain which made it even harder to see. "I am fine. Can you take him, though?" Grace assured him.

Without another word, Danny took charge of the situation. It was a dire one.

And of course, there were no lifeguards on duty today. He was not even sure if this beach has lifeguards. Grace no longer had to carry the weight of the boy since Danny took over for her.

It had been weighing her down.

"You sure you okay?" After Grace nodded, they slowly began their way back to the shore. Grace was exhausted.

She swam mechanically, after Danny. But she gradually got slower 'cause she could keep up the pace. She stopped for a few seconds to regain strength when out of a sudden, a wave rolled over her and kept her trapped beneath the surface.

Grace felt panic.

 _Don't breathe._

 _You'll get water into your lungs._

Her mouth and nose were fully submerged into the water. It seemed like an eternity before she was able to surface again. She was still far away from the shore. She concentrated at locating Danny. He was running up the beach with the lifeless boy in his hands.

Someone had seen what happened out on the water and called for help. An ambulance was parked at the nearest entrance to the beach and EMS personnel was immediately beginning to treat the boy, starting ACLS protocol. Someone started maintaining his airway and another person had started chest compressions.

For a few seconds, Danny watched what happened.

Then he remembered Grace who was still in the water. "You saved the boy's life." The paramedic said who was inserting a tube into the boy's airway.

"I didn't. It was my daughter. She kept him alive. She did it. I need to get her. She is still in the water." Danny exclaimed.

"I think she is still in the water."

That frightening thought startled Danny, he now realized that Grace wasn't behind him. He needed to get to Grace and save her. "We got another one in the water."

The paramedic instantly radioed for a second ambo. Just in case it was needed.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Danny didn't waste another second, he jumped into the water for the second time today. It was still raining, but luckily only slightly. He hadn't expected that this family trip would turn out this way.

And Grace did not even want to come.

He had to get to Grace before it is too late. He'd never forgive himself if something happened to her because of him because he wasn't quick enough.

He finally reached her, after what felt like hours. "Grace." He called out her name, desperately hoping for a response. As a reaction to his question, he heard her coughing while trying to keep herself above water.

"I'm here."

Danny was behind her within a few seconds, holding her safely above water.

"You are safe."

He felt her relax slightly when she realized Danny was here, keeping her above water.

After her breathing calmed down a bit, Danny made his way through the waves, keeping a tight hold on Grace who was so glad that her Danno rescued her from the water. It really was a scary situation. "Grace, you okay?" Danny asked as he started swimming, he had Grace in a tight grip.

"Fine, Danno." She replied breathlessly.

Danny didn't quite believe her but the important thing was to get her back to the shore and then hopefully, everything would be just fine.

The waves were getting higher, splashing into both their faces.

Grace sputtered out water that went into her airway when the next wave surprised her and suddenly, there was water. She held her breath and closes the larynx to prevent air from being inhaled or exhaled. Eventually, the internal drive to breathe became too much and Grace opened her mouth to breathe.

But instead of breathing in air, she aspirated water into her lungs. That's all she knew.

After that, she didn't have any recollection of what happened. She didn't know what happened after that, what happened after Danny pulled her now lifeless body out of the warm water. "Help." The detective screamed as they reached the sandy shore.

He put down Grace on the sand, starting to listen if she was breathing. As far he could make out, she was.

But he wasn't sure, the only he was sure about was that she was out cold.

Immediately, people swarmed around them, wanting to help.

Somebody pushed Danny aside, knowing he wouldn't be any use to them right now. "She's unconscious and she's not breathing." Danny heard someone say. "Let's start rescue breaths." He heard someone say.

"Please help her," Danny got out.

He couldn't understand what was happening right in front of him. Grace was supposed to be okay, she was supposed to be awake and responsive.

Then he heard sirens coming nearer.

Professional help would be here soon. Before Danny knew it, paramedics with emergency bags were running toward them. "Is this the patient?" One of them asked. "That's my daughter, Grace. She went unconscious when I was pulling her back to the shore. Initially, she was conscious and talking to me."

The other paramedic was gathering needed equipment from the ambulance and came back with a monitor and the blue emergency bag since chance they might need it.

And they did need it.

They needed the pediatric bag- valve- mask to ventilate Grace.

Because she wasn't breathing after being pulled out of the water. But at least, her heart was beating. "We need to bag her." The paramedic said quietly to his colleague.

"Do it."

Instantly, the blue emergency bag was opened. A bag- valve- mask was pulled out and put on Grace's face. It was effectively allowing proper oxygenation and ventilation.

After a few more rescue breaths given by an Ambu bag, Grace was starting to come to.

"Grace. Can you hear me?" One of the paramedics asked her loud and clear. Danny watched anxiously. The other people made space for the rescuers and walked off, now that help was there. A few stayed and they continued to stare.

Grace looked at him with big eyes as she took in her surroundings. "You're okay, Grace." He added.

"Are you with me, Grace?" He asked again.

This time, Grace responded weakly.

They were beginning with checking her vitals. Pulse. Pulse Oxygenation. The basics. "What's all this?" Danny motioned to the bag. Now that Grace was breathing and awake, he paid more attention to what was in the blue bag. "Things like oxygen, breathing masks like the one we just used, and intubation kits."

Danny looked horrified after hearing the answer.

"Don't worry. This is just a precaution. First, we do a quick exam to assess vitals. Part of that is the electrocardiogram and pulse oxygen levels to determine oxygen saturation of the blood."

Danny still wasn't convinced.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Danny had been surprised at how fast his daughter recovered. A few minutes she'd been unconscious and not breathing and now she was awake and talking, insisting she didn't need to go to a hospital. Danny couldn't believe it. Grace couldn't be serious.

She just survived a near- drowning.

She has to go to the hospital. According to the paramedics, all patients that require some sort resuscitation, even if only rescue breaths, should go to the hospital for evaluation.

And Gracie received rescue breaths.

Which meant she needed to go to the clinic to get checked out. Danny knew that.

After having re-established breathing, they were now starting to rewarm her and get her out of those wet clothes.

"I don't need to go to the hospital," Grace argued. After all, she felt fine. Grace still felt a bit wiped but was overall fine. The fact that she lost consciousness in the water, she ignored entirely. Danny shook his head. "I am sorry that our trip ended this way but I am not backing down on this, Grace. I am not waking up to you dead in the morning."

Danny felt very strongly about this.

Grace scrunched her face. "What do you..." She asked but got interrupted by the sudden urge to cough.

She couldn't stop for what seemed like a minute. A very long minute. Danny was instantly concerned that there really was something wrong with Grace.

Seriously wrong.

The ambulance with the boy already was on its way to Queens Hospital, Honolulu. But after getting to know that there was a second person in the water, they radioed for another ambo that had reached the beach and was now waiting for their patient which was Grace, in this case.

Grace was still sitting down. It was easier than standing upright. She was missing strength.

Grace continued to cough.

"Grace, she's aspirated some of the water and was underwater for a few moments. Now she's coughing, a lot." Danny told them.

"Have you noted anything else?" The paramedic asked.

"Chest hurts," Grace mentioned in a weakened voice. "Tired." She added as an afterthought.

"Any other symptoms like dyspnea, tachypnea, coughing, wheezing, altered mental status?" One of the paramedics asked while listing possible symptoms that may be of concern in such situations.

Danny shared a look with Grace who was still sitting down.

"Persistent coughing, yeah that is indeed true, also some trouble breathing with breathlessness and dyspnea." Danny gave them the necessary information.

"Are you feeling okay now?"

Grace pondered the question for a bit before answering. "Not all that great." She finally answered. "Breathing's kinda hard but I can manage." Grace sighed before letting out a small cough.

"Do I need to go to the hospital?" Grace asked, "I mean, besides the persistent coughing I feel okay."

"But you did aspirate some of the water into your lungs which mean they fill up with fluid. That fluid damages the lungs' inner lining which is called surfactant and therefore interferes with lung function." He explained while feeling for a pulse at her wrist.

It was kinda hard to feel it, so circulation may be a bit inadequate.

"And that can..." She paused to take a few breaths. "... cause problems?" Grace questioned, the paramedic's attention was now on her somewhat strained breathing pattern.

"Let's go over the ambulance so that we can check you out." He said to Grace who seemed to have a little trouble breathing. Not much, but enough to make her stop protesting and insisting that she didn't need an ambulance.

Danny nodded.

"Can you stand up?"

In reply, Grace started to cough again. Apparently, there really was fluid in lungs that were now having an impact on her

"Guess so," Grace mumbled, breathing heavily while trying to stand up.

Danny helped her up, as did one of the paramedics. But after a few moments, it was clear that she couldn't. "Danno." Suddenly, there was a voice behind him. Charlie. Who was also there?

"Stay there, Charlie. I'll be back." He said.

Charlie glanced at him, confused.

"We better get her to the ambulance so that we can check for lung sounds." Danny heard them talk using a lot of medical jargon before one of them went to get a backboard so that they can transport Grace to the ambulance.

"Danno?" Grace looked up at him with big eyes. "Yes, monkey?" Danno answered while pressing a soft, quick kiss on her hair. "I'm scared."

"Of the hospital?" Danny asked.

His daughter answered with a quick nod.

"You don't have to be. They will help you feel better, monkey." Danny responds to Grace, waiting for her answer. "I will be there soon." Danny continued.

In the ambulance, they got her on a monitor. "Get her on the monitor. I want pulse ox, heart rhythm and check her blood pressure." After a quick examination, they decided there was no imminent threat to her life.

Danny was relieved when he heard that especially when they told him that even though right now Grace is doing quite well, all things considered, there might still be complications which are why it's best for her to be hospitalized so that the nurses and doctors watch out for those complications.

Danny knew he'd probably regret asking that question but he needed to know. "What sort of complications are we talking about here?" He said after taking one of the paramedics aside.

"Possible complications may include flashing pulmonary edema, pneumonitis, another complication may be respiratory distress syndrome. Do you want to sit in the back to be with your daughter?"

Danny just then remembered Charlie.

"What about my son?" He asked.

"He needs to come as well." Danny glanced at his son who was a few meters away from them but watching them intrigued.

"Let me check with my partner." He said, hurrying to the vehicle, carrying the blue emergency bag in his bag.

Back in the ambulance, the paramedic made sure Grace was secured on the stretcher when she told him: "Tell Danno he can drive to the hospital. I'm okay."

A second or two later, he reappeared and said: "My partner said that according to your daughter it's okay for you to take the car." Danny was unsure, he glanced over at the ambulance that had lights on but without the sirens.

"Give me a sec, I need to speak to her."

The paramedic grimaced slightly, knowing that even though the girl seemed fine for now, they had to get her to the hospital.

He walked over to the ambulance after assuring himself that Charlie stayed away from the water line. "Grace?" He called her name as he entered the vehicle. One of the paramedics was sitting next to her, filling out paperwork that the hospital would receive. He wrote down symptoms, vitals, medical history, anything that might be useful to the hospital.

Grace was wrapped in a warm blanket to prevent hypothermia.

"Danno?"

Grace's face lit up when she saw Danny.

"Monkey, I'm sorry about all of this." He said regrettably. "I never thought..." Grace interrupted him.

"I am fine, Danno. I promise."

"I love you, monkey," Danny said, giving her quick kiss on her hair. "I will come to the hospital with the car."

"I love you too," Grace said, before letting out a cough. When Danny left the vehicle, her pulse ox numbers began dropping a little. "Gary, hurry it up a little." He called out before closing the back doors and tending to the now blaring monitor.

His patient was now gazing at him, terrified of what was going on. With pushing a button he silenced the monitor.

"You're okay, Grace. It's your oxygen saturation that dropped. Is your breathing okay?" He questioned as he checked the monitor for other abnormalities.

"It feels like I can't get enough air into my lungs," Grace complained, she was gripping onto the stretcher as the paramedic pulled out a stethoscope to assess her lungs sounds.

"I'm just going to listen to your lungs, Grace if that's alright with you?" Grace nodded, it was easier than talking.

He put it on her chest, asked her to take a deep breath.

"Take a deep breath for me."

He frowned for a moment but since Grace had her eyes closed for a moment because she was tired, she didn't see it.

"Grace?" He wanted to check if she was still conscious.

"Yes?" She responded wearily.

"Just checking." He smiled at her before continuing his exam.

He checked out her lungs at various spots on her chest before repeating the procedure after asking her to lean forward. Just then, the engine was started and they were on the way to the hospital.

After finishing, he grabbed an oxygen mask.

"Here, put this on. It will help with your breathing." Grace sent him a thankful glance before putting on the mask.

The paramedic was right, it really did help her breathe easier.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Danny hurried with packing up his things after the ambulance drove off. He and Charlie hurried to the car. "Danno?" He heard his son ask. "Is Grace okay?" He asked, knowing something was not quite right when his sister wasn't with them in the car, also Danny seemed a little occupied at the moment.

"She'll be okay, she's a tough girl, buddy. She's just a little sick at the moment." He assured him.

Danny accelerated the car they drove through the streets.

After what seemed like an eternity, they reached the emergency department of Queens Hospital.

He parked the car in the nearest parking space, helped Charlie out of the car and then both hurried inside the building. Danny walked quickly over to the front desk, Charlie was holding onto Danny's hand.

"Can you tell me where I can find my daughter, Grace Williams?" Danny asked impatiently, worry could be seen on his face. The nurse looked it up on her computer, before pointing him to where Grace was being treated.

"She was the brought in by an ambulance fifteen minutes ago. The near- drowning?"

Danny frowned.

The way she said was kind of cold. "Yeah, that's her. Grace Williams." A few clicks later, she said: "Follow me."

When her view fell on Charlie, she told Danny that Charlie wasn't allowed there, unless he needed to be treated.

"So what do I do?" Danny said. He really hadn't thought about that.

"Nurse Jennifer will keep an eye on him." She suggested. Danny agreed but only because there was no other option. They reached Grace's room, and Danny a doctor exit the room, instantly he assumed it was Grace's doctor.

When he saw them, he walked toward them. "Are you the father of Grace Williams? I'm Dr. Alani, Grace's doctor." The question was directed at Danny who nodded in reply.

"That's me. How is she?" Danny questioned immediately, hoping to be able to see his daughter soon.

"For now your daughter is doing okay. We have her on oxygen until her lungs are cleared of fluid. A chest film showed no major concerns which are a good thing. We want to watch her for the next forty-eight hours to watch her and make sure everything is functioning normally." Dr. Alani told Danny who took in the news that was given to him.

"She'll be discharged when her symptoms clear up." Dr. Alani added. "Until then, we're keeping her under observation. But for now, she's alright."

She was okay, Danny thought relieved. Sure, things still could go wrong but she was doing well now.

He hoped it would stay this way.

"Can I see Grace?" Danny wanted to know. He continued, "I need to see her." The doctor nodded. "She's in room 212." He pointed toward the room, not far from the point they were standing, on this floor.

"Danno," Grace exclaimed with a smile.

She was very happy to see Danny. "Oh, monkey." He murmured as he hurried over to her bed. "They said I am doing well. You can stop worrying, Danno. I'm okay." Grace assured him.

"I'll never stop worrying about you. You and Charlie are best things that ever happened to me." Danny replied, before giving her a quick kiss on her head.

"I am so glad you are okay."

Danny whispered. He had no idea what he would have done if he had lost her.

"Come here, give Danno a hug."

Grace leaned forwards and enveloped Danny with her arms. She whispered into his shoulder: "You know it's not your fault, Danno, right?" Grace knew Danny well, therefore she figured he must be feeling guilty about this.

"But I let you go out into the ocean." Danny stuttered helplessly. "You had to make sure Charlie was safe."

Danny saw her take a few shaky, deep breaths before letting them out in a cough that wracked her body, momentarily rendering her unable to focus on anything except trying to breathe.

"You're okay, Grace. Just breathe." Danny rubbed her back slowly, soothing her.

After almost a minute, the persistent coughing stopped.

Danny felt immense relief.

He hated seeing Grace suffering like this.

"I was." Grace continued unperturbed. "I was fine, I got into trouble when I went after that kid in the water."

Danny listened to her.

"I couldn't get him to land on my own. You did that, you came, Danno. And when I couldn't swim anymore, it was you that saved me. Me ending up in the hospital sucks but it's not your fault." Grace told him. Danny gave her a weird grimace.

He still wasn't entirely over blaming himself. "It's still partly my fault." Danny said, "I am sorry."

"I could have gone to you, told you what was happening but I didn't so I ended up in danger as well. I misjudged the situation." Grace confessed, turning her head to glance out the hospital window.

For a moment, nobody talked.

"Did you tell mom?" Grace asked. "Not yet. I was waiting until I knew more about how you're doing. I guess I need to call her now." Danny sighed.

"Let me speak to her." Grace suggested.

"After you tell her about me in the hospital let me speak to her. So she won't freak out." Grace smiled slightly.

Danny agreed.

It would good for Rachel to their daughter's voice after receiving such news. He dialed her number and waited for Grace and Charlie's mother to answer.

"Danny?" He heard her voice, her British accent is very noticeable.

"Rachel." Danny paused for a second, not exactly knowing how to begin. "What happened? Did something happen to Charlie or Grace?" Now the detective could easily make out the concern as her tone shifted.

"Grace is in the hospital?" Danny finally told her. "What? Daniel, is she okay?" Rachel demanded.

"She's okay. They want to watch her for two days to make sure there are no resulting problems." Danny elaborated calmly, hoping Rachel wouldn't react hysterically.

"But why's she even hospital?" Rachel wanted to know.

"She went into the water trying to save someone and ran into problems. I got her out of the water." Danny told her. "But she's fine, isn't she? Let me talk to her." Rachel demanded.

Danny gave the phone to Grace, who listened to her mother talking and then said: "Danno's right. I am fine."

After a pause, "Mom, really, I am on oxygen right now but overall, I am okay."

Danny watched her, worriedly.

Grace had a hard time convincing her that she was doing alright.

After a few minutes, Grace finished the call and put the phone down.

"She insisted on coming over." Grace informed him. "Apparently, she didn't quite believe when I told her every ..." A cough interrupted her sentence and Grace closed her eyes for a second.

"You okay, Grace?" Danny asked concerned as simultaneously her pulse oximeter started whining. The whining of the pulse oximeter worried him. Was it normal to have a pulse ox of only 88% - Danny had no idea but the fact that the machine started giving beeping noises was alarming.

Maybe he should call the doctor?!

To make sure everything's where it should be.

At once, when Grace stopped coughing, the pulse oxygenation went up again and stabilized promptly. Maybe the sudden drop was because she was coughing, Danny concluded.

Her pulse ox seemed to fall for a minute but then returned to 95% which was considered normal.

Grace nodded.

Danny continued to watch the numbers on the screen. The monitor was still beeping in regular instances.

"She didn't quite believe me when I told her I was fine," Grace said. Danny just shot her a look, saying he didn't believe her either.

In that moment, the door opened and a nurse entered. "I just wanted to conduct a quick check." She explained.

"Is this because the monitor started beeping?"

At that, the nurse looked up, mildly concerned. "What do you mean?" She asked quickly, glancing at the monitor while contemporaneously taking Grace's blood pressure.

"Something caused her pulse oxygen to drop when she was coughing. I don't know maybe that's connected." Danny answered. "I'll mark it in her chart. So far, everything looks almost normal. Her blood pressure is lower than I'd like it to be, and she's a bit tachycardic. Dr. Alani will be by soon.

"What does that mean for her?"

"Let's wait for Dr. Alani, he'll be able to explain all of this to you." Then the nurse exited the room.

They didn't have to wait long for the doctor to show up.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Danny watched his daughter sleep. Soon after Dr. Alani checked on her, she fell asleep. She was exhausted by today's events. Now he was holding his daughter's hand tightly, trying to digest everything that happened. Her hands were cold. Danny knew it was late and that he should try and get some rest. But he couldn't, not right now.

He glanced at the heart monitor that was showing a more or less normal sinus rhythm. And some other numbers he couldn't quite make sense of.

Then, he saw Grace twitch slightly.

Danny figured she was waking up. "Grace?" He whispered but there was no reaction coming from her.

He hoped Steve would be here soon, Danny had called him when they were on their way to the hospital. Then he heard the commotion behind him. Something had happened in the few seconds he wasn't watching. Danny turned around and was shocked at what he saw. He couldn't believe his eyes.

Grace looked at him, sheer panic in her eyes as she tried to suck in air.

But her lungs just wouldn't work.

The doctor was next to Grace, he was attentively studying the heart monitor next to her hospital bed, looking concerned. There was something wrong with her, Danny felt it. He was sure.

Danny just stared at them.

No.

What the hell was going on?! She'd been conscious a minute ago.

What had changed?

"Detective Williams. Please step outside now." A nurse gently led him out the room. Danny tried to resist, he wanted, no, needed to be with Grace but there was no use. Soon, the door closed after them and they were out on the hospital floor.

Grace.

Danny stared numbly at the closed door to Grace's hospital room behind which the doctors were now trying to save her life. He had stopped resisting. Somehow he ended up in the waiting room. Danny had no idea how he got there.

Grace, he needed her to be okay.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Dr. Alani received an emergent page to Grace's room, the girl who was admitted after a near- drowning. He entered the room to find the monitors blaring and his patient was visibly struggling to breathe. The father of the girl seemed shaken up by the happenings.

"What's happening?" He instantly asked, contemporaneously pulling out his stethoscope.

The doctor was next to Grace, he was attentively studying the heart monitor next to her hospital bed, looking concerned. There was something wrong with her, Danny felt it. He was sure.

"What's wrong with her?" Danny's voice shook slightly but it was still noticeable.

"We need to take her for further studies but my guess is it's a beginning flash pulmonary edema, a complication of the near- drowning." Dr. Alani, Grace's doctor, explained quickly.

When Danny looked even closer, he saw that Grace's consciousness was fading, albeit slowly.

"Pulse is sixty and falling." The monitor started beeping, at the same time alarming the pediatrician that was paged as well, that something was wrong.

"Pulse ox is around eighty- seven seems like she's becoming hypoxic." The nurse noted, Dr. Alani stopped talking to Danny and came over to check the parameters that were now raising his concern.

"What's the blood pressure?" Dr. Alani wanted to know.

After the blood pressure cuff on Grace's arm sighed and released, the nurse and Grace's doctor could see that her blood pressure was a little on the low side.

"Blood pressure's low."

"Systolic pressure is ninety, diastolic is at forty."

Grace, at this point, really was struggling to breathe. Her lips were somewhat cyanotic, a blue tint on her lips.

Grace was sitting up because lying down wasn't a good idea now.

Lying down would mean she would not be able to breathe.

At all.

Panic could be seen in her eyes as she was having trouble with breathing. The oxygen mask was doing nothing to help her breathe, not like it before. Now it wasn't helping, not even a bit. The mask fogged up as tried to take a breath.

Danny feared Grace would soon lose consciousness if they didn't do anything soon. He didn't know how much time had passed after doctors stormed into Grace's room after the alarms went off.

A horrifying situation.

Dr. Alani put his stethoscope on Grace's chest, listening for breath and lung sounds, frowning when he heard Grace's lung sounds.

Grace became more and more anxious as she felt the effects of hypoxia sets in. Her lips moved behind the mask but nobody saw it, there were more concerned about her current B problem. For Grace, it got harder to breathe with each minute passing.

"Auscultation reveals fine crackles and wheezing, especially in dependent lung fields." He told the pediatrician. He also noted dyspnea. "Probably due to an accumulation of fluid in the alveolar space."

"We need to get the hypoxia under control, otherwise we're gonna have a problem." Dr. Alani said, thinking about the spiral of hypoxia leading to unconsciousness, cyanosis and eventually, cardiac dysrhythmias. And he wanted to prevent that from happening.

"We should get a chest film." Dr. Alani ordered.

"Probably pulmonary edema, her first chest x- ray that was done when she was admitted was nearly normal but there were a few early signs pointing towards the development of a pulmonary edema." He said to a fellow doctor from pediatrics.

"And someone get the father away, he doesn't need to see this." He added loudly.

When Danny wasn't in the room anymore, they tried to get her breathing under control for the duration of the chest film. But her breathing didn't get any better, instead, it worsened and turned into a respiratory arrest. "Crap. We have to intubate. Get me a pediatric intubation kit." He ordered while lowering Grace's head board to that he can secure her now failing airway.

Grace had now lost consciousness, the monitor was screaming all sorts of alarms while the doctors worked calmly and efficiently to save the girl's life.

When they had the results of the chest films, Dr. Alani, and the pediatrician saw that there was peribronchial and perivascular cuffing.

"See that over there? It's representing an accumulation of interstitial edema." The pediatrician pointed at another thing that concerned him.

"There is interlobular edema as well."

"I don't see any late signs are secondary to alveolar filling, no bilateral interstitial or alveolar infiltrates."

"That's good." After diagnosing Grace with flash pulmonary edema, they started her on a supportive therapeutic regimen. The treatment was largely supportive, due to the nature of the pulmonary edema. It was noncardiogenic so their goals were to ensure adequate ventilation and oxygenation.

Additional therapy that Grace is receiving is directed toward the underlying cause.

"She's now on supplemental oxygen in an effort to increase alveolar oxygen tension and decrease pulmonary vasoconstriction. I say we move her to the pediatric intensive care." The pediatrician decided.

After moving her to the pediatric intensive care, they worked to get her hypotension and hypoxia under control.

But they had a little trouble with getting the hypoxia under control despite the fact that she was being mechanically ventilated. Because they had that kind of trouble, eventually they ran into problems. Or more specifically, cardiac dysrhythmias.

The cardiac monitor suddenly started beeping noisily. "Crap." Someone said. Dr. Alani and his fellow doctor immediately recognized that her rhythm changed from sinus tach to ventricular tachycardia.

Which wasn't at all a good thing.

"She's having bouts of VT." Someone yelled out.

Instantly, a nurse pushed in the crash in case it was needed. "It's sustained VT, lasting longer than thirty seconds, we need to terminate it or it'll cause hemodynamic collapse." Dr. Alani decided it was too late to see if antiarrhythmics might work so they got the defibrillator ready to do a synchronized cardioversion to terminate the arrhythmias.

The pads were already placed on Grace's chest when they started charging.

"Charge to 100 joules."

When it was fully charged and synchronization to a QRS complex is confirmed, Dr. Alani yelled 'Clear' and then delivered the shock.

But nothing changed.

The monitor still showed broad QRS ventricular tachycardia. But it got a lot worse, within seconds it turned into ventricular fibrillation. Which meant they no longer could cardiovert. Instead, they would have to defibrillate. Ventricular tachycardia frequently deteriorates to ventricular fibrillation.

"We need to shock her, this time charge to 200 and clear." Dr. Alani yelled, pressing the paddles onto Grace's chest. He would save this girl, she's only fifteen.

She would not die from this, he'd make sure of that.

Her body jumped up slightly from the electrical current sent through her body.

All glanced at the cardiac monitor, hoping to have reversed the arrhythmia. When they got her stabilized enough, Dr. Alani ordered repeat labs to try and figure out why Grace went into cardiac arrest.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

"Is she okay, do you know anything?" Steve stormed into the waiting room. Danny shook his head. Danny Williams blamed himself for this. It was his fault that Grace was in trouble. All Danny knew is that she did not want to come but he made her.

Now he wished he had not done that.

If he hadn't made her come with them, she might not be in this situation.

She wouldn't need to get treated for flash pulmonary edema that was due to secondary drowning. All because of a trip to the beach. This was proof. The islands hated him. And Danny really despises the beach. Especially now.

"No, no news except that they are treating her for exposure and fluid in the lungs." Danny hid his face in his hands.

"It's my fault, Steve," Danny confessed.

"If she dies, it's on me. I failed to properly supervise her." Danny continued. "Weren't you the one getting her out of the water?" Steve asked, knowing Danny's got to be taking this hard.

"I did," Danny said. "But I wasn't fast enough." Steve didn't really know what to do or say. He doubted it was all Danny's fault. He'd never leave her out of sight when swimming, not after what happened to his friend Billy during a summer vacation. Danny had once told him what happened, it was when they were stuck on a dinghy in the ocean.

I don't like the ocean, 's what he said. And now with what's happening to Grace, for sure he'd blame himself.

"I mean she was doing fine. Then he wasn't." Danny murmured, not quite believing that this was really happening.

"She was talking to me. Laughing."

Danny shook his head. "Then she said she couldn't breathe well, that she felt like she was drowning. I pressed the button and when I turned around I saw her struggling for air." Steve didn't say anything, instead, he just gave him a hug, hoping it would help.

"Grace is strong, she'll fight this." Steve tried. "I'm gonna go and try to find out if they have any news on her condition," Danny said in reply.

"The waiting is making me crazy."

Steve stopped him: "Her doctor will come and inform us, I'm sure. They're treating her in there. She's in good hands. Come on, Danny, sit down."

Danny sighed. "You're probably right."

Both of them stayed silent for a little while. After some time, Steve interrupted the uncomfortable silence.

"Does Rachel know? And where is Charlie?" Steve asked. "I told her, yeah. She's coming over. Charlie's over there, playing in the children's corner in the waiting room.

Danny got up and started pacing. Didn't they say her chest films were normal? What had changed?

In that moment, Rachel stormed into the waiting room.

"Daniel." She exclaimed, worried.

"What happened?"

Danny sighed, before looking away. He couldn't look Rachel in the eye, not after what happened to Grace.

"She's ..." Danny couldn't continue.

Steve jumped in, knowing Danny was too overwhelmed and feeling guilty about what happened. "She talked to me on the phone. Daniel, you assured me she's doing fine. Why are you in the waiting room and not with her? You left her alone?" Rachel ranted, not taking one second to think about how Danny is feeling.

"Something happened. Danny was with her but there were complications. We don't have more specific information about her current condition." Steve said calmly.

Rachel shook her head.

"But why did this even happen? You didn't watch her, left her alone in the water. This would never have happened if you had just paid attention." She said icily.

Steve gasped, he hadn't expected this.

At all.

In the mean time, Danny had decided to sit down. But when he heard the harsh and mean words that came from Rachel. "You have no right to say that to me, Rachel. I didn't leave her alone. Not willingly. I'd never do that." Danny said quietly but loud enough for Steve and Rachel.

"She saved someone, Rachel." Danny exploded.

"What?" Rachel responded weakly.

After the initial shock died down, her behavior changed from accusing to just being plainly concerned.

"A boy is alive because of her. She got into trouble while trying to save him. She called out for me, I came." Danny told her.

"Mommy."

Charlie came running when he saw that his mother had arrived.

"Hey, Charlie." Rachel kneeled down and gave him a bear hug. "Mommy, Grace sick." He mumbled sadly.

"I know, but you know, Charlie, the doctors here will make her feel all better, just like how they did it with you." Now she was surely referring to Danny donating bone marrow to Charlie so that he can live.

Then she looked up, stood up.

Rachel stared at Danny with an angry expression. "You shouldn't have let her out of your sight. She could have died. She may be dead already."

After hearing that, Danny shot up from the chair he was vacating and stormed out of the waiting room. "Watch him, okay? I need to go after Danny. He doesn't deserve this, Rachel. Danny's a good man, the best. He cares about his children, he'd never let them get hurt if he could somehow help it." Steve continued before running after Danny.

"McGarrett, I ..." Rachel answered.

"Save it, I need to go. I need to go after Danny." Steve answered shortly. He didn't want to talk to her anymore.

He found Danny standing outside the hospital, near the entrance. People could see him but he didn't care. "Danny," Steve called out as he ran over to his best friend, his brother.

Danny gave any kind reaction. Steve wasn't even sure if Danny had heard him.

"Danny."

Steve put his hand gently on his shoulder.

It was just then that he realized that there were tears running down his face, that he was crying.

Without saying anything else, Steve was being there for his friend, giving him a shoulder to cry on. Minutes passed and the two men were standing there, one being comforted by the other.

"She's gonna be okay, Danno," Steve whispered.

"Gracie's tough."

"Did I do this to her, Steve?" Danno questioned, his voice shaking. "Danny, Grace wouldn't want you to blame yourself. Rachel was angry at the situation at the whole, not just you. You didn't do this to Grace, Danny. This is due to a chain of events that were out of your control."

"I can't go back in there, Steve," Danny confessed. "Let"s just sit here for another few minutes," Steve suggested and Danny agreed. Danny was staring over at a few palm trees across the parking lot.

Danny did not realize Steve was talking to him. "Danny?" After calling out his name a third time, Danny responded.

"Yeah?"

"Did you call Chin, Lou, and Kono?" Steve asked, knowing his friend had not called them, not yet anyway.

Danny shook his head.

"They'd want to know, Danny. They care about her, Grace's family to them, just like you." Steve quietly mentioned.

Danny gazed at him with red eyes.

"Call them." He just said. After Steve made three calls to Kono, Chin, and Lou, they decided it was best to go back to the waiting room, even though Rachel was there too. But what if there were any news on Grace? It was better to wait there than waiting outside and running the chance of missing an update.

Soon after making those calls, Chin and Kono arrived at the waiting room, where Danny and Steve were vacating two chairs on one side and Rachel sat on the opposite side of the room. "Danny, I'm so sorry. Have you gotten any updates?" Kono asked.

Danny just shook his head tiredly.

"We're here for you, brah." Chin offered quietly. Both seemed very concerned about Danny and Grace.

"Thanks, Chin," Danny replied, taking a deep breath. Maybe ten minutes later, there was still no word on Grace, Lou hurried into the room.

"Why are we sitting on opposite sides of the room?" Lou asked he arrived a little later than Kono and Chin.

Dr. Alani, who made an entrance, interrupted the silence that was a result of the heated up discussion.

"Family of Grace Williams?"

Danny immediately stood up when he heard the doctor. "That's us." He said. "What's going on with Grace? Is she okay?" He threw questions at the doctor and didn't let him get a word in edgewise.

"Do they have to be here for this?" Rachel asked, referring to the rest of Five- 0. Danny looked at her, shocked.

"I want them here, Rachel. They're just as much Grace's family as you and me." To the doctor, he said: "Tell me, how is she doing?" The doctor took a moment before responding: "First of all, Grace is stable. She had fluid in her lungs, causing pulmonary edema. It happens in victims of drowning."

"What does that mean for her, is she going to be okay?" Danny asked, concerned about the well-being of his precious daughter, his monkey.

Steve stayed near Danny, providing some comfort in the situation.

He hoped that his niece would be okay, it would shatter Danny if anything happened to her.

"We're confident she'll recover but the recovery process may take a while. She's now in the pediatric intensive care unit where she'll remain until further notice." Dr. Alani continued.

"Okay." Danny slowly said, trying to understand everything the doctor just told him. "There's something else, Detective Williams. While we were treating her, she had problems with her heart rhythm." Danny stared at him, realizing that this was bad.

Absolutely bad.

"What do you mean?" He asked quietly, Rachel listening but deciding not to butt in. "She had runs of sustained ventricular tachycardia which turned into ventricular fibrillation. We managed to get her back after shocking her twice."

"So she survived a functional cardiac arrest?"

That was Steve joining into the conversation. "Essentially, yes. She survived a functional cardiac arrest."

"Functional what?"

Danny asked, not understanding a word his partner had just spouted off.

"The heart is in functional cardiac arrest, the electrical stimulation leads to inadequate or no ejection at all, for example in cases of ventricular fibrillation in which there is still cardiac activity but not to an effective degree which means there is no blood flow to the organs." Dr. Alani explained. "But she is okay now, considering the circumstances. We got her back relatively quick, also she is young and healthy without any significant medical history, so hopefully, she'll be fine."

"When can I see her?" Danny asked. He needed to see her.

"Follow me."

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

It was a long time until Danny was able to visit Grace after they had stabilized her and moved her to the pediatric intensive care unit so that they can keep a close eye on her. Dr. Alani was behind him when stepped quietly into his daughter's room. Instantly, he registered the continuous beeping coming from various machines. Dr. Alani made a quick note into her chart that fluids are to be restricted due to pulmonary edema.

"Oh, my gosh, Grace."

His heart was beating very fast at the sight of his unconscious daughter lying in a bed that seemed way too big for her, especially with all the tubes and lines connected to her.

Dr. Alani had quietly followed him.

Danny let out a gasp when he realized that she wasn't breathing on her own, a machine was doing it for her. What had the hell happened? He still could not comprehend what had happened, at least not fully. "She's intubated so that her lungs can recover. It's easier for her." The doctor told him.

"What?" Danny said, confused by what he's been told.

"Your daughter has a tube down her throat to help her breathe." Dr. Alani explained in layman terms. "Also, we're having some trouble regulating her temperature. It's still lower than I'd like it to be." Danny stared at him, not quite knowing what to think.

"What do you mean by that? Are you saying she's hypothermic? She was fine before the pulmonary edema. She was talking to me and now she's on that ventilator. How does something like this happen?" Danny got out, holding back tears that threatened to fall down his cheeks.

"Grace is mildly hypothermic, yes. But we are trying to correct that right now with a warming blanket and we've started giving her warmed fluids. Hopefully, that will help."

Danny stared helplessly at what was happening right now.

Dr. Alani opened the bottom drawer and reached for a syringe as he needed to do some labs on Grace and an arterial blood gas analysis as well.

"I need to do some blood work." Dr. Alani offered as an explanation.

Danny nodded in reply.

"First, I take some blood to take to the lab, then I'll do the ABG analysis to check hypoxia levels." He murmured while inserting the syringe into a vein in Grace's arm.

When he was finished taking blood, he started with the arterial blood gas analysis. When he got the results of the arterial blood gas analysis he saw instantly that there was indeed a surprising degree of hypoxia. But that was to expect with the patient having pulmonary edema. The result also helps with determining further course of treatment.

Danny walked to Grace's bed.

He saw the IV access in her left hand, the leads of the cardiac monitor connected to her chest. "How did this happen? She was talking to me." Danny repeated his question.

Dr. Alani sighed before answering: "Sometimes respiratory symptoms are delayed until several hours after submersion, in your daughter's case this may be true. "

It was quite a shock to see his beautiful daughter in this way.

"Can Steve come?" Danny asked without looking away from Grace once. "Mr. Williams, it's better to limit the number of visitors to intensive care." Momentarily Danny shot him a glance. "I need him to be here, he's family to Grace and me."

"Okay, fine. But two visitors at the time. Not more." Dr. Alani said, giving the monitors a quick once over before asking Danny if he had any questions.

"No, thanks." Danny murmured, he kept holding onto Grace's hand, still standing in front of her bed.

Not long after that, Steve McGarrett entered and quietly stepped behind Danny, putting a supportive hand on his shoulder. Steve seemed similarly overwhelmed by all the medical stuff. One thing that he instantly noticed was the central line. It was what Danny was staring at as well.

"This wasn't there before," He pointed out in a low voice. Danny pointed toward the before mentioned central line and the tube.

"Danny, I'm here." He silently said.

"What do I do, Steve?" Danny turned around to face him. "This is my fault. She didn't even want to come."

"We went over this, Danny," Steve said, sounding angry.

Danny huffed.

"We went over this and this is not your fault, Danny. She saved that boy's life and in the process of doing that, she aspirated some of the water which is what landed you here." Steve told him. "If it wasn't for you, she wouldn't even be alive."

Danny didn't say anything in reply.

Into the sudden silence, the door opened. Both Danny and Steve looked up. "Rachel?" Danny exclaimed in surprise. "I just want to spend a few minutes with my daughter. Please, Daniel?" Rachel begged, a lone tear running down her cheek.

She was ashamed of herself because of what she said to Danny in the waiting room. She didn't mean to say all of that.

It was really just a lot of pent- up emotion that got released.

Danny nodded.

Rachel walked over to Grace's bed, taking in what she saw.

Their daughter being mechanically ventilated because she wasn't able to do it herself.

That was hard to fully comprehend.

Rachel took Grace's hand carefully into her hand, before looking up at Danny who was standing on the other side of the bed, holding Grace's hand, thinking of her IV access, careful not to put any pressure on it.

It was Rachel who made the first step.

"I'm sorry, Danny." She said, apologizing for what she said to him.

She knew it wasn't right to say something like that to him because it simply wasn't true. He'd never let Grace get hurt, not if he could somehow prevent it from happening.

"I'll leave the two of you to talk it out." Steve was out the door before Danny could add anything. Steve went back to the waiting room where Chin, Kono, and Lou waited patiently. "Steve, have you been in to see Grace?" Kono fired a question at their boss.

"Is she okay?" She continued.

Steve sighed before answering: "Well, she's doing as well as can be expected. She's on a vent in pediatric ICU. Danny and Rachel are with her right now."

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

It was one day after the day on the beach that ended tragically or could have ended even more tragically. Danny sat in a chair next to his daughter's bed. Rachel had been in to see Grace the day before for fifteen minutes before deciding it was best to take Charlie home for the day. Thankfully, she hadn't said anything about their big blowout in the waiting room which ended with him fleeing out of the room because he wasn't able to stand Rachel's behavior anymore.

"Danny," Steve quietly entered the room, glancing at Grace who was still lying there, unmoving. "Steve?" Danny asked, before yawning. He'd been up all night.

He just couldn't sleep. So he didn't.

"Did you have anything for breakfast?" Steve asked.

Danny simply shook his head, still looking at Grace whose status remained unchanged. During the night, Dr. Alani came to check on Grace three times.

"No. Not hungry." Danny replied, rubbing over his face with his hands. Steve moved his head in concern.

"Danny..." He began but Danny hindered him.

"I am just not hungry."

Steve let it go for now. "But at least drink that." The commander insisted. "What is that?"

"It's water, Danny." Steve rejoined.

"Fine." That was Danny's answer as he chucked down the water. Minutes passed, nobody said anything, they just sat there in silence that was only interrupted by the constant beeping of the machines Gracie was attached to. In that moment, a nurse entered the room. Danny and Steve both looked up.

"I'm just going to check her temperature." She said as an explanation. After she took it and looked at the screen, she left the room without saying something.

Danny glanced at Steve and said: "Something's wrong."

"You don't know that."

"Why would she leave the room so suddenly without assuring us everything is okay when everything is okay? So, this ... this means that something is wrong."

A minute later, the nurse returned with Dr. Alani in tow.

"What's going on?" Danny wanted to know.

"We need to take Grace for a repeat chest x- ray, Mr. Williams." He explained. "She's showing early signs of pulmonary infection." Danny stared at him, shaken.

Steve was just as shocked as Danny at the sudden, unwelcoming news broken to them.

"Pulmonary infection? I thought she had pulmonary edema, not some sort of infection." Steve questioned, obviously confused by all the weird medical terminology.

Danny was too startled to say anything.

He was glad that Steve was doing that for him.

"We'll talk to you as soon as we know more. Please wait in the waiting room." Dr. Alani told them before releasing the brakes on Grace's bed. Soon after that, Danny and Steve saw them moving the bed to get the chest roentgenogram done.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

It seemed like hours before Dr. Alani came back with the test results. Hours that were spent sitting on hard, uncomfortable chairs in the waiting room.

Danny still couldn't believe what was happening. That it was taking so long probably wasn't a good sign. When he finally came to update them on Grace's condition, Danny and Steve were both worried sick about her. "Detective Williams, Commander McGarrett, Grace has been settled again in the pediatric intensive care unit. Our tests determined that Grace is indeed suffering from a relatively mild case of bacterial pneumonia due to Grace aspirating water into her lungs. Apparently, there were bacteria in that sea water." The doctor explained.

"What does that mean for Grace? Will she be okay?" Danny asked instantly. He stood up from the chair he'd been sitting in while waiting for news on Grace.

He'd hoped that this wouldn't happen.

Wasn't a respiratory arrest due to pulmonary edema enough?

"We hope so. We have her on antibiotics specifically targeting the bacteria causing the infection and we're hoping to fight the infection with that. If necessary we can put her on antipyretics to lower the fever. But it may be that pulmonary support may be necessary for a few days, especially now that she's got aspiration pneumonia." Dr. Alani told them.

"I want to see her," Danny said quietly.

"Follow me." Both Danny and Steve trailed behind the doctor to Grace's room. When they entered the room, both of them saw all the monitors and machines. "But she's doing okay when considering the circumstances?" Danny wanted, no needed to know. "Dt. Williams, all I can tell you is that she has got a good chance. We don't know yet how well she will respond to the antibiotic but we're hopeful. That's all I can give you right now."

"Thanks, doctor," Steve said as he watched Danny slouch down on a chair next to Grace's hospital bed.

"Have the nurse page me if you have any concerns or questions." Dr. Alani told them before leaving them alone in a room full of blinking, continuously beeping monitors.

"Danny," Steve said quietly.

"No, Steven, this is my fault," Danny said angrily. "This never should have happened." Steve agreed wholeheartedly with that second statement because Danny was right, this never should have happened. It shouldn't have happened to Grace. "It should not have happened to Grace, that's right but you're not going to blame yourself for this, Danny."

"Don't fight me on this, Steve. This is my fault."

Steve sighed but gave up trying to convince Danny that everything wasn't his fault. He knew the Jersey native wouldn't believe him anyway. Instead, the Seal focused on Grace's face. Her beautiful face. She didn't deserve this.

Danny was so damn right about that.

Danny glanced over to Steve before his gaze went back to Grace who was lying there, unconscious and unmoving.

The normally perky and energetic, vibrant girl was lying completely still in a hospital bed, surrounded by beeping machines and all sorts of monitors. She was on continuing supportive treatment, which is aimed primarily at achieving acceptable arterial O2 and CO2 levels. Due to the hypoxia, she had a little trouble maintaining her oxygenation at an appropriate level which is one of the reasons Grace is on a mechanical ventilator, with positive end- expiratory pressure ventilation to maintain adequate oxygenation.

She was on nebulized albuterol to help reduce bronchospasm and wheezing. Danny shook his head in disbelief.

In that moment, a nurse entered the room. "I'm here to take her vitals. I'll be out in a minute." She quickly said.

She glanced at the monitors, making sure all the parameters were at least within semi- normal range. She noted that her heart rate was kind of slower than normal. She wrote her observations down in the chart. Then the nurse pulled out a thermometer to check Grace's core body temperature. Danny was watching her actions attentively.

After taking Grace's temperature, she pursed her lips in concern.

Danny and Steve immediately picked up on that. "What is it?" He wanted to know. The nurse looked up before answering. "Your daughter's temperature is worrying me. It's at 103." She explained.

"Let me page the doctor."

Two minutes after that page, Dr. Alani was hurrying through the door. The nurse and Dr. Alani talked quietly for a minute or so, for Danny it seemed like an eternity. After a while, he turned to Danny and Steve, knowing these two must be freaking out about what was happening to little Gracie and told them that he had put Grace on antipyretics to lower her temperature. And the antipyretics seemed to be working because Grace's temperature stopped rising and even was lower than when they last measured.

"Seems like the antibiotics and other meds are finally working." She told them.

On the second day, it was clear that the antibiotics were working. Her blood work and ventilator settings confirmed it. Danny was relieved to hear that. Dr. Alani had been in to tell them that earlier today. Now it was almost afternoon. Chin and Kono came by but left a few minutes ago.

They'd seemed shocked too to see Grace in this vulnerable state.

Steve was still here, not in the room but on the floor to find some food for Danny and himself.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

It was four days before Grace's status was being downgraded from critical to stable. When her oxygen saturation had remained stable for more than twenty- four hours, Dr. Alani was talking about trying to see whether she was ready to come off the ventilator.

It'd be a huge step.

Danny hoped Grace would be able to breathe for herself. He'd watched a machine breathing for her way too long.

He longed to see her blue eyes again.

"Grace's pulse oxygen levels are good, now that they're staying above 97% before they improved the levels were hovering around 89 to 92%. Her other vitals are improving as well, blood pressure's nearly normal as well as heart rate." He said, deciding it was time to see if it was possible to get Grace to breathe for herself later this day should she decide to wake up.

And that's what he told Danny and Steve who were impatiently waiting for news.

"We're waiting for her to wake up so that we can be sure it's safe to remove the tube." Dr. Alani explained. "So, she has to wake up before you remove the tube?" Danny asked. He wasn't sure what to think about this. On the one hand, he wanted Gracie to wake up but if that meant she had to lie there, awake and with that tube jammed down her throat. For sure, that was not comfortable.

Dr. Alani nodded.

Danny breathed in deeply. "Danny, Grace can do this. She'll wake up today." Steve said, hoping to assure Danny. Dr. Alani saying that meant progress. It meant that Grace had continued to improve overnight. Which is essentially the best news they could hope for, at this moment.

This would be awesome.

Grace being off the vent would be so good.

"You're right," Danny said, for once choosing to believe Steve.

"She'll wake up."

In that moment, Dr. Alani's pager went off, the sound scaring both men. "What is it? Is it Grace?" Danny asked not realizing that it wasn't any of Grace's machines she was connected to that was beeping but that it was the pager Dr. Alani was carrying.

"Everything's fine, Detective Williams. I got paged." With that, Dr. Alani hurried from the room.

"Grace may come off the vent, Danny," Steve said, a smile on his face.

Danny nodded.

He concentrated on Grace's face, hoping she'd open her eyes and look at him.

"Danny, I need to go make a call. I'll be back in ten." Steve said before disappearing. He needed to update Kono, Chin, and Lou. Kono made him swear to keep them in the loop about Gracie's condition.

Steve was pacing around outside the intensive care unit while waiting for Chin to answer his phone. After waiting almost a minute for Chin Ho Kelly to pick up, he finally answered his cell phone. "Hey, Chin." Steve greeted the Hawaiian native. "Morning, Steve." Pause. "How's Grace doing?" He then asked.

"We're all worried about her, brah." He continued.

Steve smiled, despite knowing that Chin wouldn't be able to see his smile. "Well, according to Dr. Alani, she's doing just fine. He's talking about trying to get her off the vent sometime today should she wake up. So, we're positive she'll be off the vent soon." That sounded confident, Steve knew that. And he was sure Grace could do this, wake up.

"That's awesome news, brah. Good luck to Gracie and tell Danny we say hi and that we're thinking about Grace."

"She's a tough girl, Chin," Steve said.

"That she is, indeed. Now, go back to Danny, he must be waiting for you." Chin said. "I'll update Kono and Lou on Grace's condition. And, Steve, make sure Danny's eating."

"Thanks, Chin," Steve ended the call and walked back to Grace's room. And Chin had been correct, Danny was waiting for him. "Come on, Danny, let's go down to the cafeteria for a bit to get a bite to eat and then we come right back here to be with Grace," Steve suggested. Danny frowned.

"I'm not hungry and I am sure as heck not leaving Grace," Danny said stubbornly. Steve took in his partner's state. He was kind of pale, actually. Not as pale as Grace but still, the lack of food in his system was more or less obvious.

"I'm not taking no for an answer, Danny."

Danny sighed. "Fine. Thirty minutes. Not more." Then he followed Steve down to the cafeteria. A few minutes later, there were two men sitting on a table with trays and food in front of them. Danny scrutinized his food closely.

"This looks barely eatable." He then said.

"Well, do me a favor and eat it anyway. You need to eat. You can't be there for Grace if you are making yourself sick by not eating." Steve explained. "Some garlic shrimp would be better," Danny mumbled. "Had you said something earlier, I'd have asked Kamekona to come and bring some."

"Remember it for next time." Danny continued their banter.

Steve only laughed.

"Will do, buddy. Will do. But let's hope there won't be a next time." When they finished their meals, they returned to Grace's room. Nothing had changed while they weren't there. Grace was still on the vent and the parameters on the monitors were okay, as far as the untrained eye could tell.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Grace stirred a little bit. Danny could not believe what he saw. "Grace?" He asked with a quiet and shaky voice. Grace's eyes slowly fluttered open. But she couldn't talk. She was still intubated but the ventilator still assisted 100%. Grace tried to form words but the endotracheal tube was not allowing it. It was obstructing her airway. She wanted that thing out.

"It's okay, Gracie. It is just the tube. It'll come out soon. But just let it do its job." Her eyes were full of questions. "I'm so glad you're awake," Danny said, closing his eyes in relief but looking back at Grace whose eyes were only halfway open.

He figured it was because she was still very tired.

Grace closed her eyes for a second, then she opened them again and focused at Danny. He grasped her hand and squeezed it gently. He noticed that her hands were still cold. But she was alive, finally, the antibiotics had started working. He didn't realize that Steve informed a nurse about Grace waking up.

Steve had a smile on his face as he walked over to a nurse so that he can ask her to page Dr. Alani.

Hopefully, they could extubate soon.

She was going to be okay.

He was so grateful for that. Before he knew what was happening tears were rolling down his cheeks. Tears of indescribable joy he now felt. Hopefully, they could take her off of the vent in a few hours or at least lower its assistance.

He pressed her hand softly.

He was elated when Grace replied the pressure with a squeeze, then he placed a short, gentle kiss on her forehead. What happened, he could read lots of questions in her eyes. He hesitated.

Only the constant beeping of the cardiac monitor could be heard, reminding him Grace's heart was steadily beating.

After staying awake for a couple of minutes, Gracie's eyelids seemed to droop. Danny realized she was falling asleep. Danny was happy that she was finally awake and he patiently waited for Steve and the doctor to return.

"I hear our patient is awake?" With that, Dr. Alani entered Grace's room in intensive care unit. Danny looked up and saw that Steve was following behind Dr. Alani.

"Yeah, she is," Danny said with a smile.

"And she squeezed my hand." He continued.

"That's great news." Dr. Alani checked the monitors for any gross abnormalities, then decided everything was within normal limits. "So, everything looks good, so we could try weaning her off the ventilator."

Danny looked at him in confusion. But before he could ask what that means, the doctor beat him to it and already had an explanation ready to give. "Weaning means gradually decreasing ventilatory support. We would use spontaneous breathing trials to assess your daughter's ability to breathe on her own."

Steve and Danny listened quietly to what the doctor has to tell them.

"You sure Grace is ready for this? You said it yourself, with the infection and the pulmonary edema, there is a chance that she might not be ready?!" Danny showed some concern, sharing a glance with Steve who understood that Danny wanted to err on the side of caution.

"That's what the breathing trials are for." The doctor said patiently. He put a stethoscope on her chest, repeatedly listening to her lungs to detect wheezing or anything else that might be of concern.

"I still detect a little bit of wheezing but with the nebulized albuterol, she should be alright. I'm decreasing the ventilatory support from hundred per cent high- flow oxygen to the ventilator only assisting fifty- five per cent." Dr. Alani said, pushing a few buttons on the mechanical ventilator.

The now changed ventilator settings mean that the ventilator forces Grace, for every breath she took on her own, to take another breath.

She was almost ready to come off of it.

Danny held his breath, he felt a little bit scared.

Scratch that, he felt extremely scared at this very moment.

Steve seemed to know that, suddenly he felt a supporting hand on his shoulder. Danny shot Steve a thankful glance which Steve quickly returned with a glance that said 'No need to thank me, buddy'.

"Through testing, I determined that the timing is right for extubation." Dr. Alani cut to the point. "Let's begin. Nurse Kaylea, prep for extubation. Detective Williams, please try and wake up your daughter. We need her awake for this."

"Grace, I need to wake up, monkey," Danny softly said, leaning down to Grace's face. First, there was no reaction but after he placed a small kiss on his daughter's forehead, she slowly started to come to. She tried to speak but the tube in her throat didn't allow her to.

"You can't speak right now, monkey."

She looked wildly around, trying to locate Danny. When she found him, her eyes fixated on him.

"Grace."

Another voice caught her attention. "I know the tube is uncomfortable. We're about to remove it. I need you to cough while the tube is being removed."

Grace looked at him with big eyes.

"Can you do that for me?"

Grace blinked tiredly, telling them she understood what they wanted from her.

Dr. Alani started to pre-oxygenate the patient with 100% FiO2 and then continued to extubate following the protocol. He came to the point where he had to hyperinflate the patient while withdrawing the endotracheal tube which he did in a rapid and fluid motion. Then he instructed Grace to cough.

After a trial and making sure, all indications for extubation are met, he slowly started to remove the tube.

After removing the tube, Dr. Alani kept a close eye on the cardiac monitor, watching intently for any changes in rhythm and oxygenation as well as blood pressure. But everything seemed to stay the way it should.

Not long after removing the tube, Grace tried to speak.

"D'nno." She tried to say.

Instantly, Danny was at her side, assuring her that she was okay.

"You're okay, Grace. Just rest. Danno will be here," He promised her. Without needing any more persuasion, Grace followed his advice and closed her eyes.

Within seconds, she was already asleep.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Danny yawned as he opened his eyes. Soon after that, he realized that he fell asleep on the uncomfortable chair in Grace's room in step down unit. She was no longer in the intensive care. She'd been moved to another floor after being extubated and considered stable enough to be moved.

When Danny heard about that, he was so happy to hear that.

Because that meant, no longer was there a stupid visitor limitation in place.

The rest of Five- 0 would be able to visit Grace.

And another perk was that maybe Rachel would be able to bring Charlie by to visit his big sister, to see that she was doing alright. It was now day five after the near- drowning and Grace was doing remarkably well. Suddenly, there was movement. He was standing up within seconds, seeing it was only his partner.

He released a relieved breath.

"Danny, why were you reacting like that?"

"Because you're a freaking ninja, you know that right? You could have said something to me, like 'Hey, Danny, how's Grace doing? And what about you?' but instead, you sneak around like a ninja Seal on a mission." Danny ranted.

Steve had a goofy grin planted on his face as he listened to Danny's ranting. He'd missed that the last few days. He was glad everything slowly seemed to return to normalcy, now that Grace is awake and doing well.

"Danno?" Grace asked as she slowly woke up.

She squinted and let her eyes adjust to the light and saw that Steve was there as well. "Uncle Steve? You here?" Steve smiled at Grace. "Of course I'm here. I'm glad to see you awake."

Grace grinned weakly.

"Me too." She said in reply before coughing.

Instantly, Danny looked at Steve, obviously alarmed by Grace coughing. "Danny, look at her. She's okay. The coughing will probably persist for a while." Steve calmed him down. "I'll talk to Dr. Alani when he comes by.

"What ... happened?" Grace asked, strained.

Danny sighed, he didn't really answer that question. He threw a glance over to the Seal who understood what his partner was trying to say. "Grace, you've been unconscious for the last few days. You had us all pretty worried here, young lady."

" 'm sorry," Grace mumbled tiredly.

"Nah, you just focus on recovering, Grace. Danno and I will be right here if you need anything." Steve said, taking her hand and pressing it softly. Grace replied with clutching tightly onto his hand. Steve gave her a warm smile.

"Love you guys," Grace murmured before falling asleep.

Danny had a huge smile on his face after watching his daughter and partner interact.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Grace was sitting up in her bed, alert and fully awake. She was still coughing now and then but was doing overall fine. It was the ninth day of her hospital stay. Four days out of nine, she'd spent in intensive care. Dr. Alani was very pleased with her. Grace was excited because today, Chin and Kono were coming to visit her.

"Danno, when do you think I can go back to school?" Grace asked as she twiddled with her blanket. Danny looked around. Grace's room was decorated with balloons that said 'Get well soon' from Steve and the rest of Five- 0.

Also, Rachel had been by yesterday with Charlie who was finally able to visit, now that Grace's been moved to a regular room. She was no longer being continuously monitored.

Sure, there were regular checks done by the nursing staff and the doctor was still checking her lungs regularly.

"I don't know, monkey. I'll have to ask Dr. Alani what he thinks about it."

Then there was knock on the door. "Come in?" Danny called out. The door opened and the head of Five- 0 put his head through the gap. "Grace. You're awake."

"Of course I'm awake, Uncle Steve. Why shouldn't I be?" Grace asked, quite interested. "Uh," Steve didn't really have an answer. At least, he didn't really want to answer. Luckily, he was saved from answering when Kono and Chin entered the room as well. "Uncle Chin and Auntie Kono," Grace exclaimed happily.

"It's so good to see you, Grace," Kono said.

She bent down to her and promptly gave her a big hug which Grace happily replied.

Danny watched, he was so glad he had people he could rely on. His 'ohana. This was something he didn't have in New Jersey. Danny Williams was glad for having such a close- knit not so new- found family. Steve knew what his friend was thinking about and smiled at him goofily.

Danny leaned over to him and said: "Thanks, Steve, for being here. Come here, I love you." Then, they hugged. "Love you too, Danno."

"You know I hate it when you call me that," Danny mentioned in the next second. Steve even had the decency to look perplexed. "That's wrong. I know you secretly like me calling you Danno. Just deal with it."

Danny huffed.

"You're really some piece of work, McGarrett, you know that, right?" Danny shot back.

What both men heard next was Grace and Kono chuckling at their antics. Even Chin was trying to keep himself from laughing.

"Before I forget, Grace, I have something for you," Kono said.

"Can I see it?" Grace asked excitedly.

"Well, I kind of can't bring it to the hospital as it is way too big. It would draw too much attention." Kono whispered into Grace's ear. The young girl laughed at that.

"But I can tell you what it is." Kono offered with a smile.

Before she could continue, Chin added: "Cuz wants to teach you how to surf." Kono turned around to hit Chin playfully on the arm. "I wanted to tell her that." Grace lit up. "Really? That's so great. I've always wanted to learn but Danno always said it's too dangerous."

"That's because it is indeed dangerous. Water activities are dangerous." Danny cut in.

Grace rolled her eyes.

"I know. But I'll be careful. You know that Auntie Kono knows what she's doing. Considering she was surfing on the pro circuit once." Grace knew exactly what to say to Danny to get him to agree. "I know she was a pro before she blew her knee out." Danny replied. "But I'm not sure if it's a good idea, especially now that you've had such a close call."

Danny seemed genuinely worried.

"I'll be careful." Grace argued. "Let's just wait until you get discharged, monkey," Danny said sighing.

He did not want to have that discussion just yet.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

"Danno?" Grace asked when they were alone.

"The boy I saved, or you did, anyways can you maybe try and find out how's he's doing?" Grace glanced at Danny, silently begging him to say yes. "Okay, monkey, I'll try and find out for you," Danny replied, "If you promise that you try to sleep now. You're still sick, Grace." Grace rolled her eyes.

"I know, Danno." She said, intentionally avoiding looking at him.

"So be a smart girl and sleep."

"What does me being smart have to do with sleeping?" Grace asked curiously. "Because sleeping means you're resting which means you'll probably have a faster recovery and so on. That's what I'm talking about. You know Grace, what happened to you really scared the hell out of me. For a few hours or more I thought I'd lose you."

Danny saw that Grace was shocked at Danny's sudden and totally unexpected admission.

"Danno..." She slowly said.

"It's all okay now, monkey," Danny quickly said, Grace not believing one word. But she didn't nag him for further details. If she was honest, she really was tired. The doctor had said it would take a few days for her to reach her normal self. But she was _alive_ , which was _everything_.

"Sleep." He said. "I'll be there when you wake you." Danny said lovingly.

"You promised to find out, Danno." Grace whispered before she succumbed to her tiredness and she found herself sleeping. When he was sure she was asleep and after he asked Steve to stay with Grace - he'd never left the hospital - he went to find out about the boy that was brought in with Grace.

He asked for his doctor at the nurses' station.

"The boy that was brought in with Grace?" The nurse asked. "Let me look it up." Danny heard the key board clicking as she tried finding out information. That's when Dr. Alani appeared, a patient chart in his hands. "Detective Williams, what are you doing out here? Is everything okay with Grace?" Dr. Alani asked when he saw the detective leaning against the nurses' station.

"Uh, Grace asked me to find out about the boy that was brought in with her." Danny answered. "You happen to know anything about how he's doing so that I can tell Grace?"

"As far as I know, he's still in the pediatric intensive care unit after having been resuscitated. But according to his doctor, he's stable for the time being and they should be able to move him to step down unit somewhat tomorrow. Your daughter can be proud. Without her help, that boy would have died." Dr. Alani told him.

"So I can tell her he'll recover?"

Dr. Alani nodded.

"Thanks. But now I need to return to Grace's room, before she wakes up." Danny said quickly.

It was not long after Danny came back to her room when she woke up. Steve and Danny were talking quietly. "Danno?" She asked after waking up fully. "You find out anything?"

Danny got up, walked over to Grace's bed.

"Dr. Alani told me that he should be alright." Danny confirmed. "He also said that you should be proud. You saved that boy, Grace. Your actions were courageous. Without your help, he'd not be alive right now."

"So, I saved him?"

Danny nodded.

"I actually saved him?" Grace smiled. She was glad that the boy survived this ordeal as well.

Danny nodded for another time, confirming what Grace wanted to know.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

"Good morning, Grace." Dr. Alani smiled at the girl. He was glad that she was doing so well after all that happened. "Morning. When can I get out of here? I am okay now." Grace asked, glancing at the doctor. "Let me check your lungs first before I can even think about letting you out of here. By the way, where are your father and your uncle? It's kind of surprising not to see them here." He questioned lightly. Grace laughed in reply.

"Well, I managed to convince them to go home and get some rest." She said proudly.

"That's good."

Then he listened to her lungs. "But I have an even better thing to tell you. If everything stays like this, you'll be released this afternoon. How's that sound?" Dr. Alani told her, obviously pleased with her progress.

"You're kidding," Grace exclaimed. Not allowing herself to be happy about this.

"No. Do you have any idea when your father comes over?"

"Should be here soon," Grace told him. "And you're really not kidding about discharging me?"

Dr. Alani gave her a smile.

"I see no reason for me to keep you here. Your lungs are clear again, the symptoms are gone. But let's wait for your father to arrive. He'll want to be briefed about this." She sat on the edge of her bed, waiting for her Danno and Uncle Steve to come pick her up. Grace had convinced Danny and Steve to go home after they spent a week watching over her. Now she was waiting for them. Not long after Dr. Alani left Grace's hospital room, leaving her excited and happy at the prospect to finally get out of here, Danny and Steve arrived.

Not only that, they had Chin and Kono in tow.

"Hey, monkey," Danny said happily when he saw his daughter sitting up and obviously impatiently waiting for him.

"Danno. You wanna know what Dr. Alani said when he came to listen to my lungs?" Grace said elated and a huge grin planted on her face.

"He said I might get discharged today," Grace told him.

"That's awesome, monkey." Danny gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

"Let me go find Dr. Alani. Uncle Steve, Uncle Chin and Auntie Kono are here as well." Danny saw the smile on Grace's face. He was so freaking happy that Grace was doing so well. Words couldn't even begin to describe his relief.

Danny was lucky that he found Dr. Alani quickly when he was talking to another doctor about a case.

Danny waited in some distance. He didn't want to intrude.

When their ways parted, Danny took the opportunity and accelerated in order to keep up with Dr. Alani's pace. "Dr. Alani, wait," Danny called out. Danny's voice made the doctor turn around. "It's nice to see you, Danny." Dr. Alani responded. "I figure you've already seen Grace and she told you about the possibility of her getting discharged later today?"

Danny nodded.

Wow!

Grace had been right.

Dr. Alani smiled at him. "Well, I can say that I'm quite pleased with her. Her symptoms pretty much disappeared, just some coughing but that'll persist for a little while because of pneumonia. But the infection is under control and she's doing fine. If nothing changes, she can go home later today."

"Really? This is awesome." Danny grinned in excitement.

"Thank you."

"I just did my job." Dr. Alani said in surprise.

"You did so much more. You made sure that Grace would survive this and for that, I can't thank you enough." Danny said, holding out his hand to shake Dr. Alani's hand which he took.

"Thank you," Danny said seriously.

Later that day, Danny packed Grace's bag while she was waiting for the nurse to come and remove her IV access. Also, they were waiting for the discharge papers. "Here are your discharge papers." Dr. Alani said after entering the room. "Where do I need to put my signature?" Danny asked.

After having signed the necessary forms and having been given discharge instructions, Danny, Grace, and Steve, as well as the cousins, were ready to leave.

Grace was so glad to be finally released from the hospital.

The ten days she spent in the hospital was a not so nice experience. Sure, she's grateful for everything the doctors have done to save her life but Grace and she knew for a fact Danny too, are looking forward to her coming home.

"So, who wants to get some decent food?"

"Me!" Grace was the first to answer.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Later that evening, all of Five- 0 met at Kamekona's shrimp truck like they planned ten days ago. But their plans got interrupted by what had happened to Grace. But that didn't matter now. Grace was doing fine now. Danny and Grace were sitting in Danny's Camaro. "Danno, why aren't we getting out? The others are waiting for us to show up." Grace asked.

Danny let go of the wheel after he parked near Kamekona's shrimp truck. They could see that the majority of their 'ohana was already there.

"Danno?" Grace sounded kinda impatient.

"Give me a second, Grace. I want to say something but I'm not sure how." Danny said, his voice was shivering a bit.

Grace frowned a bit.

This was somewhat unusual for her Danno.

Her Danno who was normally very confident in everything he does. But not right now. Right now, she noted that he seemed unsure of what to say. Unable to find the right words.

"I'm sorry." He finally said.

For a moment, Grace just stared at him.

"Danno, why are you apologizing?" She asked, confused as to why Danny started to apologize again. Haven't they been over this? But they've been through a lot the past two weeks so she let him get everything off his chest.

By telling her.

"I just feel like ... like what happened is all my fault. I know you and Steve and everyone else has been telling me it's not but that doesn't change the fact I failed. Failed to protect you from getting hurt." Danny gazed through the windshield, at some point far away.

Grace stayed quiet for a few seconds before unbuckling herself. She took Danny's hand and squeezed it tightly.

"I love you, Danno." She meant every word.

"You're my dad, my Danno. You can't protect me from everything. We're flawed, it's a human trait. And for the record, you did not fail me. You always fought for me. You saved me when I was in the water. Not only me but you also saved that boy." Grace told him, tears in her eyes as she tried to get Danny to understand some things were just out of his control.

"Grace..." Danny tried to say.

"No, Danno. I love you, and stop blaming yourself for this." Grace interrupted, in a strong and confident voice.

"Okay. I'll stop." Danny looked at his beautiful daughter, he was so glad that he was alright.

"I love you, monkey, you're the most important person in my life, next to your brother," Danny said, a slight smile on his face.

"And Uncle Steve." Grace threw in, a mischievous smile on her face.

"And Super Seal, yeah," Danny agreed. "So, let's go get some shrimp, shall we?" He asked. Grace nodded excitedly. She was glad to be out of the hospital. When she stepped out of the car she breathed in the fresh, salty air. She could see the ocean from where she was standing.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

Grace was standing near the water line. She could hear the water splashing against the rocks. She was only a few meters away from the table where the rest of her 'ohana was sitting and happily chatting. Out of a sudden, quiet steps came nearer. But Grace didn't turn around.

Without looking, Grace knew it was Kono.

"You afraid of going into the water?" She asked, standing next to her while staring out of the ocean. A palm tree near Kamekona's shrimp truck was swaying slightly in the wind.

Grace turned to face Kono.

She shrugged.

"Don't know. Maybe I am a little afraid of the water." She admitted. "I'm going to tell you something." Kono began. Grace listened intently to what Kono was telling her. "You know about my surfing career?" When Grace nodded, Kono proceeded with her story.

"Once, a wave knocked me off my surf board and I was trapped in the wave." She began. "I didn't know where was up and were was down. There was so much water around me and I was trapped in the middle. I was so scared, scared that I wouldn't get out of this alive." Kono shook her head as she relived that horror- filled moment.

"How did you get out?" Kono faced Grace.

"Honestly, I don't know. At some point, everything just got dark around me. Later they told me that Chin was the one who jumped in after me and rescued me from the ocean."

Grace swallowed. "That must have been scary."

"It was."

"Were you scared of the water after experiencing that water can have such a strong force and can just make you disappear?" Grace wanted to know.

Kono smiled lightly.

"I was frightened by the mere thought of being in the ocean again. It took me time to go out in the ocean again. Grace, it will probably take some time before you are fully comfortable being in the water after this but we'll be here. All of us."

"Before all that, I loved the ocean. I love it now but I know its dangers. I know that it can be dangerous." Kono added.

"We'll be here for you."

"I know. Thank you for sharing, Auntie Kono."

Grace leaned over before she gave Kono a quick hug. "No problem. I can help, if you want. Help you get over your fear of the ocean." Grace smiled at the offer, contemplated taking it.

Then she nodded.

"I'd love to take you up on that offer." Grace gave her as an answer. "And I want to learn how to surf." She added, in her eyes, Kono could see the excitement at that mere thought.

It slowly got darker.

As Kono and Grace continued to stare out of the ocean, they witnessed an enchanting sunset. The sky was painted in a beautiful orange that contrasted against the darker surface of the ocean. "This is beautiful," Grace whispered.

"It is." Kono agreed.

 **H50 H50 H50 H50**

"Grace, come on, it's late. Time to go home." Danny said after walking toward the spot where Grace and Kono were sitting. The men had been sitting at the table and talking after finishing their meals from Kamekona's shrimp truck. It was a very nice evening but now he had to get Grace home. Grace yawned before stretching herself. Then she got up. "Okay, Danno."

It was nice that it seemed to go off without a hitch.

Apparently, Grace really was exhausted which was totally understandable.

"Bye, Grace." Kono told her.

Grace walked back to the table where the other adults where sitting. "Danno says we have to go home now."

Steve smiled.

"I'm pretty sure you're tired, Gracie." He stated. "It's not even eight o'clock in the evening and I'm already tired," Grace sighed as she glanced at her 'ohana sitting around that table. "Thank you for being my 'ohana." She heard a chorus of 'aws' coming to hear ears as Steve got up and tightly hugged her.

"I'm so glad you're here, Gracie." He whispered into her ear. "I ..."

"I know you love me like I'm your daughter." Grace replied quietly, in voice that only the Seal could hear.

Steve smiled when he heard those words.

"That's right, Grace, I love you like you're my daughter." Steve nuzzled her hair before giving her another hug.

"You know Danno loves you too?"

"Does he?" Steve said interested. Grace nodded heavily.

"Grace! I am waiting for you." Danny was standing not far away. Grace looked out and over to Danny. "I guess I need to go, Uncle Steve. Good night." She called out. "Sleep well, Grace." The Seal replied. After saying bye to the rest of Five- 0, Grace hopped into her father's Camaro. He'd already started the engine.

When they were in the car, Danny turned around to Grace. "You're exhausted, aren't you?" Grace nodded, she was barely able to keep her eyes open. "Maybe it was too early for this." Danny worried.

"I _needed_ this." Grace told him. "I might be dead tired right now but that won't always be the case."

Danny glanced at his daughter through the rear view mirror.

When they were home and Grace was in pyjamas, Danny led her to her room and tucked her in, like he did when she was younger. After he wrapped the blanket securely around her shoulders, he sat down at the edge of her bed. The detective gave her a kiss on the forehead. Grace smiled tiredly at him.

"I love you, monkey," Danny said affectively.

"I do too, Danno."

Danny and Grace Williams both shared a comforting hug before Danny told her to sleep. Then he got up and switched the lights off. For a moment, he remained standing at Grace's door, glancing happily and relieved at his daughter's sleeping figure before leaving the room quietly and settling down to sleep in his own bedroom.

He couldn't believe he came this close to _actually_ losing her.


End file.
